6 more days…

Track 5. The Storm/Track 11. The Storm (Instrumental)

This is my absolute most favorite song on the whole album. I love the minor keys, because whenever I am moody or depressed, I can play them and they take me to deep places where I feel so connected in my soul. I feel the deepest, dream the deepest and imagine far away places that will take me to where Jesus is one day. I love to brood in the minor keys. Have I depressed you yet? Fortunately for you, my producer put in a bright and beautiful major chorus while I took care of the moody minor verses.

I think a lot about how many distractions there are in this world. Including this darn thing that is sitting on my lap that I am typing onto to share my thoughts and helps me create so many cool things musically. It also helps me to network with the social media for the ministry and stay in touch with family and friends that I feel supported by. But I feel like it is a “necessary evil” to have to work the social media so much with it.  Yet, I know it’s usefulness far outweighs it’s negative aspects and especially if kept in check. So it’s a love-hate relationship. But I digress.

It wasn’t called The Storm to begin with, but “the storm” was in the lyric. For the longest time while we were working on the song it was just something we referred to as major-minor because it switched back and forth between the two. In the theme of the verses, I likened all of our busy-ness and usage of electronic devices, etc., to noise and a storm that keep us distracted from hearing God’s voice in our lives. And I wonder if I, also, am just too distracted by these things that interfere with my relationship with Him.

I think, with the pace of technology and having to keep up with the networking and social media for business, plus all the other things we do with our families and the church, friends (the list goes on), we are kept deluded from what is really going on all around us. We are too busy. I am too busy. Life is too crazy. At some point we need to stop and say, “Enough!” for the sake of being still and knowing He is God.

So the sun comes out and it get’s our attention from all the distractions, the mundane, and the lies that we have to keep up with the Jones’ or that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. We feel the warmth and then we hear His voice speak to us again (not because we couldn’t hear it before, it was always there), but because of all the busy-ness that was distracting us from hearing it. And He asks us to remain in Him as He remains in us so we can experience His joy and His peace through the chaos.

I told Eric that I had this really cool motif that I would love to be able to use in a song and that I thought it would be cool in this song, but it was in 3/4 time and the verses and chorus were in 4/4. Eric dumped it (pun intended) right in the middle on the song and “voila!” we had ourselves a storm. Crazy cool! And that is how the title came to be. Eric was the creative brains behind the arrangement and composition. It is an incredible true co-write and we are very proud of it!

We tracked the song at Steve Brewster’s Brewbeat Studio, and again, I just allowed the Holy Spirit to move through these talented and skilled players to see what they could come up with. They were SO inspired during this song. It is so incredible to listen to it. I can hear this in a concert hall one day with an orchestra…I hope! And I really think this belongs on film, T.V., or other type media. You’ll think the same when you hear it. So because of that, I really wanted to add an instrumental version of it at the end of the album to enjoy.

So sit back and enjoy the storm. You might see me out in it! Either let yourself get drenched and dry off again in the sunshine afterwards, or make sure you have an umbrella!

5. The Storm
©2013 Jen Haugland and Eric Copeland
Jen Haugland Music (ASCAP)/From The Moment Music (BMI)

V1
Darkness surrounds our days, when all we want to see is You
Can we see through the storm
Chatter consumes our lives, while we’re listening for Your voice
Will we hear through all the noise

Ch
Then the sun pierces through the clouds
We feel the warmth, and hear Your voice speak out loud
Then Your love, calls us to remain
The clamor fades, and it’s peaceful again

V2
Invade our insanity, where we confuse what’s right and wrong
Lift these lies, we’ve strung along
At this brink of reality, where we dimly catch a view
Skies will clear, reveal Your truth

Ch

(Instrumental)

V3
When the darkness settles in and tries to take us off course
We’ll lift our heads, to You our strength and source

Ch

Skies will clear, reveal Your truth

 

Session Players
Mark Baldwin (guitar)
Danny O’Lannerghty (bass)
Eric Copeland (keys)
Blair Masters (keys)
Steve Brewster (drums)

Brian Green (orchestration)

Ronnie Brookshire (engineer)
Brewbeat, Franklin, TN